Welcome to chapter 17 and I do have a few things I want to say.
This chapter delves a bit more into the magic side via info dumps. I'm not gonna lie, I'm on the fence on how well those go over since they required a flashback to explain. That said, they have important worldbuilding information, so I hope you like it.
We get into the medical trials and we have the various characters learning something they didn't that not only changes the name of the game that is Remnant's secrecy plot and group but makes Obito more important to the powers that be roaming the land and living in the Kingdoms.
Coco decides to be a bit more proactive at the end and Elena's up to something as well.
Kakashi in this fic… He's a side character but I know people will be thinking he's a main… And technically, he will be a main character in certain portions of the story. He's got a story to tell and is interwoven with the main plot by process of know Danzo, being a good person, wanting to help Obito, and being a part of an important family on Remnant. If anyone hasn't figured it out by now I'll honestly be shocked and surprised, I'm literally making it as easy as possible.
For now, we're focusing on Obito and Coco's new developments!
Let's go!
~NRK~
Their IronSights group's travels came to an end when the carriage slid down an unnatural incline in an enclosing rock formation.
There was a shimmer in the air before a single person appeared.
The person was dressed in a cloth turban, flowing tan robes that fell over her shoulders not unlike the Hokage formal wear, hiding her hands and body from sight.
Their carriage stopped and Danzo exited out the back of it before rounding the corner.
The mask the person wore, blank and dark brown in color with a pair of eye holes and a Konoha symbol at its forehead, lifted up in surprise before falling as the person kneeled before Danzo.
"Danzo-sama!" she announced. "Welcome back."
Danzo nodded before looking to the cart his group came in, the others slipping out of the cart. Harold was helped out by driver while Collbrand stepped out before Esparza used his muscled shoulder to walk out with assistance.
"Hm?" the masked woman looked up to see his fellow bosses. "… If I may, Danzo-sama?"
"Stand," she did as told. "Continue."
"Thank you, sir," she said with a bow. "I'm just curious of who these three are."
"Hmm," Danzo contemplated how to introduce them before slowly nodding. "Associates and potential members of a personal squad I'm building. We've worked together for a few years and they've shown great promise."
"I see," she sounded impressed, especially upon seeing Collbrand's sheer bulk. "I'll prepare their rooms as soon as possible."
"Prepare the medical bay as well," Danzo said as the two of them saw Esparza still holding her side a bit and the war hawk touched his stomach, right around where the Grimm material was. "Now."
The woman was already gone, the little incline they came down leading down into a tunnel entrance as the distortion that hid it disappeared.
"Come," he said to the other IronSights bosses before turning to the driver. "Go back, I'll call you if I need you."
"At your leave, Danzo-sama," the teal-haired woman nodded before snapping the reigns in her hands to urge the horses attached to the cart to move. "May the day treat you well."
She bowed before disappearing in wisps of Aura and dust.
Collbrand seemed to just take to carrying Esparza in his arms as he and Harold walked over.
"I'll explain more about our current situation later," he said, getting a slow nod from both the other males.
Getting the rest of them to get up to speed would take some time but would be necessary.
He had quite the day ahead of him.
~NRK~
It was a bit of walking down a corridor when they met up with a trio of people.
Ochre, Ozpin, and Glynda stood in front of them, waving at the group. Or, in Ochre's case, nodding to them all before frowning at Coco's presence.
"What is Coco doing here?" Ochre asked, her younger sister laughing nervously at her siblings growing glare. "Coco."
"Well, I offered her a chance at learning more about her Semblance," Olivia diverted. "I asked if she wanted to try, if she felt like it. If nothing else, she's here to support Mr. Midoriya."
Obito shrugged at Ochre's questioning stare while Kakashi simply smiled, copying Obito's motion.
The older Adel groaned slightly. "Whatever, don't cause any trouble you two," she said but Coco felt that it was directed more at her than Obito.
"I'm glad to see you active, young man," Ozpin greeted. "Today's surely to be an interesting one."
"I guess so," Obito said coolly. "I'm hoping today doesn't end up being as eventful as the past week has been."
"Oh, with all that's happened, I'd say that those chances are low."
"Of course, I'd expect nothing less even with my current situation."
Glynda sighed a bit at the little back and forth the two men had, Obito's blatant distrust for her savior… For Ozpin was grating, to say the least.
There was another series of clacks and Glynda turned to look at their new guest.
"Amber, did you find everything well?"
"No problem, Ms. Goodwitch," the group heard and turned as one to see their newcomer. "Uh… Hi?"
Obito felt his body lock up, eyes fighting to go wide at the sight and feel of this woman.
She had brown skin and shoulder-length brown hair that framed her face as well as her similarly hazel-colored eyes. She wore a nervous expression at the attention thrown her way and the pull on her skin with said expression showed a series of black lines on her skin towards the upper left part of her forehead.
She dressed casually, a pair of knee-high, lightly tanned, boots and black slacks that were tied off by a brown belt. Her top was loose, long-sleeved, and similarly-colored to her boots.
Yet, it wasn't really her features that caught his attention so much as it was the Aura coming off this woman.
Something about her was just wrong… No, not wrong but potent and varied.
He didn't have a word for it, it felt like a storm of different things emanated off her. That feeling was like none other… except for one.
He twitched his hands as he felt them react, the only thing in his mind was doing his damnedest to regain some control over them. He couldn't, no, wouldn't allow for such a reaction right here!
Ozpin had done this on purpose, hadn't he? He'd brought this odd person here, who none of them sans him and Glynda had connection to, to see him.
Who was this woman? What the hell was wrong with her Aura? Why was his body reacting this way?!
She introduced herself. "My name's Amber White, pleased to meet you."
"White?" Coco asked as Obito tightened his hands into fists. "So you… No, sorry, none of my business."
"No, it's fine," Amber seemed eager for the opening. "I was found at a forest by some wreckages, the doctors told me that I had gotten lucky."
"That so?" Kakashi asked with a raised brow, hand cupping his chin while tapping it with his pointer finger. "Well, you seem to have found your place in the world, good for you."
"Yeah!" She nodded furiously. "Ever since then, I've tried my best to look forward."
"…" Olivia was rigid but shot the eager woman a shaky smile.
What in the name of the Dark Brother was with this woman?! W-Wha? What was all this?
But that wasn't the only thing, was it?
Olivia fought to keep her eyes straight and not turn to Obito's direction.
That feel of flames from him… they seemed to resonate with this woman and were… expanding, sort of? She didn't know how to explain this, this had never happened before!
What was going on?
"Amber is a recent part of the faculty," Glynda explained. "That said, she used to work as an apprentice to Ozpin when she was found since she had nowhere to go at such an age."
Ochre was all sorts of suspicious of this woman but kept her peace.
"But why's she here, Headmaster?" Elena asked with a curious tilt of the head. "I thought this little process was supposed to be for… well, close relations only."
"There's actually another reason to her being here," Ozpin said before turning to the group, more specifically, Obito. "You see, Amber always gets herself into unusual situations. From bandit attacks to finding herself in bizarre parts of old temples."
The woman blushed up a storm. "P-Professor Ozpin!"
The old man chuckled. "Ha, ha, ha, apologies, I'll get straight to the point," he smiled. "Amber is used to getting into unusual happenstance, so maybe that will have an effect here?"
Obito felt his nerves twinge painfully every second this old man spoke.
Unusual situations? Ha! Bullshit! This woman was emanating all sorts of power from her very being!
If she got caught up in unusual situations… Obito imagined that this old bastard wasn't telling them everything about those so called situations.
"So a penchant for the unusual?" Elena smiled but nobody believed that the woman was convinced. "Interesting! Perhaps that will help here!"
Glynda felt her eyes twitch but simply breathed in and out.
Elena's was more an appropriate reaction, nothing like Obito's and Ochre's.
"Well, I believe that we're late to this examination," the headmaster said and Olivia nodded slowly.
"Alright, yes, we should hurry."
Following that, the group moved down hallway after hallway before finding themselves before a large octagon-shaped door.
Pressing her finger to a scanner by the door, the door slid open for Olivia, the entryway opening via the door opening at its middle into two parts the slid into the walls of the frame.
Walking in, the group stared at the large observatory set-up before them.
It was a series of panels splayed out horizontally in front of them with a large window pane surrounding it.
Moving to the windows, they saw that they were overlooking a large flat area down below with a set of stairs coming from the observatory down towards said floor. That same side was where the stairs were and also had a pair of sliding doors that closed them off.
"This is where we'll be doing the tests," Olivia said, smiling a bit as things went back on track. "While this is testing, it's under firm orders of not being allowed to be viewed by anyone other than those here."
"Hmm," Amber hummed silently to her from the back, only one able to hear her was Obito who tossed her a look out of the corner of his eye before focusing back on Olivia.
"Give me a few moments…" Olivia turned to the console in front of them and pressed a few buttons.
The floor down below began to shift around the sides, the center a bit becoming smaller as four large cylinders appeared at the four corners of the floor.
A light began to shoot out from the sides of each one before they connected to both each other and the walls of the room, a large cubicle diagram forming before coating the walls.
"This technology is some of the most recent on the market in Vale," Olivia said. "The only places with the better stuff would be Atlas under James Ironwood's security and personal scientists."
"This is the Altered Environment Gauge Information System, A.E.G.I.S. for short," Elena said. "This is what all the simulation rooms in both the combat schools and Academies is based on."
"So it's all Hard Light Dust," Obito predicted and got a nod from Elena. "So this space can simply create anything, I presume?"
"Similarly enough," Ozpin said. "It can make the frame via Hard Light Dust, make the object move via imaging & copying, and give it weight by using a slight bit of Gravity Dust."
"…" Kakashi's eyes narrowed. "How so?"
"All things have a mass, Mr. Grey," Glynda explained. "No matter how tiny, if it exists on this plane, it has mass. Using concentrated Gravity Dust increases it weight by several magnitudes and is the normal protocol with Hard Light Dust."
"Interesting," Kakashi said with a smile. "I should look into that."
"Good luck," Coco said a wince. "That stuff is hard to get outside of Atlas, much less the price is crazy!"
"Mmm, yeah, that sounds about right."
"Now, Mr. Midoriya," Olivia began.
"Obito is fine, that last name is kind of a mouthful."
"Very well, Obito, please go down to the floor below," the fox Faunus said with a nod towards the stairs that Obito began his trek down.
Ozpin migrated to the back of the group and Amber did so as well, giving the two of them a bit more space.
"Anything unusual?" he asked with a whisper, eyes ahead on the numerous cameras in the room watching Obito walk towards the center of the examination floor.
"…" Amber cringed a bit, holding left arm with her right hand. "… I don't know what's up with him."
"Something amiss?"
"No…" she stared at Obito as he reached the floor below, his eyes looking up towards the observatory.
And yet, it was those eyes that bugged her so much.
"… His eyes," Ozpin's entire being froze. "They… They feel like magic."
Ozpin's head snapped in her direction as Olivia began the trial.
"Alright, Obito," she hummed a bit. "Might as well remove the bandages, we'll be able to get a good look at those strange arms of yours."
That caught the group's attention as they focused on the cameras following Obito.
"What are you talking about?" Coco asked with a frown as Obito began unraveling his bandages. "What's up with… his… arms… What the hell?"
They all stared at the young man's black limbs, the cameras getting up close shots so they could see just how smooth-looking the surface on his limbs were.
Kakashi's entire countenance changed in a moment, eyes narrowed as he allowed his arms to fall at his sides. "What's wrong with them?" he asked with an icy tone that Coco had to snap her head at.
What the?
Olivia was observing them at every angle, eyes flicking to every camera focused on Obito's arms. "Fascinating, it's like the pigment became black at his biceps."
She was right, that black coloring flew all the way up Obito's arms to the middle of his bicep, the change in skin color like a large cutoff point for this new color. Like a pair of long black gloves.
"…" Ozpin, now hit with the previous information from Amber and now this, could only stare at complete horror at the boy.
No, it couldn't be possible! Surely, if someone had magic, they'd have used it… Wait, that's not right.
If the boy didn't know about his eyes, that meant he didn't know what power they held, yes?
All of Ozpin's attention began to focus around the young man, mind awhirl with possibilities.
If he could get Obito to join his side, the boy might be a key to ending the grand threat of the Grimm!
He'd need to go over all the reports of him, all the information he could manage! Where he came from…
Ozpin's mind zeroed in on Qrow, the older Branwen never actually telling the old wizard where his tribe was. Perhaps, he now had the reason for that.
A Silver-Eyed Warrior giving birth to one with different eyes that held magic in them? Was it a mutation?
The amount of questions that popped up from learning this one thing made his mind boggle.
Obito stared at the black color on his arms, eyes wide at the progress they'd made up his biceps.
They'd been at his elbow the night before. Was this the actual progress speed? Or had him actively using Aura accelerated the growth/metamorphosing process?
His Aura… he hadn't tried that sphere trick again since two days ago where it covered his entire being… Were he to do it again, what would happen?
What would form from that skeleton that began to take shape over hi?
"Obito," he looked up at the observation deck to see Olivia calling him. "I guess this wasn't what you were expecting as well?"
"No," he said aloud, a small speaker-microphone machine to his right on the platform. "I wasn't expecting something like this at all."
"I see," he saw the doctor writing down something. "Very well, please bring out your Aura."
He was expecting this to come, essentially the first question as he thought.
Looking back down at his arms once more, he sighed. Time to show them.
He didn't have a way of hiding the patterns, he'd learned last night. They simply responded to his Aura on principle, like some sort of sign that his spiritual power was active, but they were darkly colored. He had that much respite, he guessed.
He nodded to her and raised a hand to chest height before allowing his Aura to flow up his body.
So it was with much confusion when he heard a slight gasp from up top.
"What?"
She stared at the thermostat on one of the viewing screens in the observatory.
"The temperature is rising," she noted with narrowed eyes as her tail went to work writing down this information before she turned to the group. "That's not even remotely normal."
Kakashi cupped his chin. "I don't have an idea for this, you all said this was Fire-type Dust, right?"
"Did it affect his Aura like this?" Glynda wondered aloud. "Along with his arms, what has happened to him?"
Ozpin kept silent as the doctor looked down in thought before sighing. "You all might as well be informed, I guess."
"About what?" Coco asked with a frown. "What's wrong?"
"… That explosion," Ochre started suddenly. "He said that it caused some abnormalities with him," her eyes were sharp and narrow as she stared at the slightly strained smile on the doctor's face. "How far do these abnormalities go?" the female senior cop asked with suspicion.
Coco blinked at that. "What?"
"What she means, Coco," Kakashi started, that steely tone back in his voice. "Is that whatever happened to Obito did a bit more than cause some damage."
"How so? Olivia?" Elena asked with a finger tapping her lower lip.
"The charts on his bed weren't complete," she started, shocking the group. "What's currently going on with his body is something we don't fully understand."
"In what capacity?" Glynda asked. "What could be causing this… 'heat', I guess, to arise with his Aura?"
"That, I do not know," the Faunus admitted with a slight smile. "That' what we're here to figure out."
The Huntress was a smite bit confused as she turned her gaze to Ozpin before blinking at the man's stern expression.
What was wrong?
"I want to go down there," Amber said suddenly, disturbing the group. "You know about my penchant for oddities, yeah? Maybe I can draw something out of this."
Ozpin nodded. "Amber is a freestyle of Huntress, she works both as a warrior and an analyst for Grimm. She might catch something we can't."
Kakashi and Ochre didn't let their suspicion show at this little declaration. How convenient that he brought them here.
He brought them to the Beacon Medical Ward.
He suggested the trials.
He brought this strange woman who had nothing to do with this along.
He was so active in this…
Kakashi knew enough about Ozpin to know he was up to something that was magic related.
Magic. Literal, god-forsaken, magic. Obito really liked embedding himself in all these ridiculous situations, it seemed.
That said, what did this magic man, this wizard, want with his friend?
Kakashi looked down at the platform below before speaking.
"If it's anything," he said. "I'll go down there as well."
Ozpin's countenance shifted a millimeter, something the others didn't catch.
Kakashi grinned behind his medical mask. "If this little addition of his is element related, perhaps I can help," he held out his hand.
Lightning sparked out, brightening the already well-lit room, in his upward-facing clawed palm.
"This is your Semblance, right?" Coco asked.
"Of course," Kakashi admitted with a nonchalant smile that the girl didn't believe. "Like I said, Elemental Manipulation is a skill of mine now."
Olivia looked at both the detective and Huntress before nodding. "Very well, go down there but be careful," she pressed a button on her console.
A quartet of lockers appeared out the wall, lab coats seen in their see-through doors. Alongside those were goggles and vests.
"Standard equipment," she explained. "All of it is element-proof to an extent, the goggles and vests are enhanced as well to handle odder situations."
Amber blinked at them both. "Scientists are so weird," Olivia laughed nervously at that.
Both of the two offered tributes got dressed in the attire before opening the door to the staircase.
Stepping out, the difference in temperature was immediate. It was the slightly lukewarm air that touched their skin, the room's warmth only seemed to get higher the closer they got to Obito.
Once they were standing a few meters away? It felt like a warm summer day.
Amber's fingers twitched.
What was he? This heat was abnormal for a series of reasons but the main one that she focused on was that it wasn't Aura-related.
Amber was a Maiden. A myth of Remnant turned story for children. She commanded actual magic at her fingertips and knew the difference between Aura and magical power with the years she'd had the power.
The heat coming off Obito wasn't Aura related, it was this fact that bothered her. Like he altered the environment he was in just by being there but that didn't make sense.
This only came about when he activated his Aura, right? Something wasn't adding up about him and this heat.
"Hey, Obito," Kakashi waved, getting a roll of the eyes from the younger man. "We're here to try and solve this problem."
"I heard it all from down here, Kakashi. What are we doing?"
"Well," Kakashi cupped his chin. "Ah! Remember that ball you held in your hands that day?"
Obito slowly nodded. "You want that recreated," Obito said more than asked.
"Yes please."
"Ball?" Amber looked at Kakashi. "What are you talking about?"
"Just wait and see," he said with a wave.
Amber frowned at that as she turned to look at Obito. "What should I—!"
No, that wasn't possible.
In Obito's hands was a ball of flames, a rotating ball of fire that burned dark blue and seemed to eat at the light around it.
Her powers knocked against her being and it took every part of her will to stop them from doing so.
What the hell was this kid?! Why were her powers… Why were they attracted to this kid's ball of flames?!
"Hmm," Kakashi observed the flames for a moment. "Obito, can you stop its rotation?"
The former shinobi blinked at that. "I hadn't thought of that before…" he observed the ball of fire in his hands.
He frowned at it, mentally urging his Aura to stop rotating and the flames slowed but didn't stop.
He closed his eyes and breathed in slowly, Aura flowing down his arm like a flame before circling the fireball in his hand. He opened his eyes wide, intent in them as he stared down the spiraling ball of flames.
They came to a stop altogether and Obito was left looking at a ball of fire in his hand.
Amber stared at the flames in Obito's hands, eyes squinting as she took a slow step back.
"I wondered if it was that," Kakashi nodded as Obito covered his mouth with the hand not holding his fireball in it. "I'd assumed that the rotation had something to do with it. Ya know, like science."
"That doesn't make sense," Obito began before sighing begrudgingly. "But I know exactly what you mean."
The Rasengan came to mind when the word 'rotation' exited his lips. Obito had also thought shape manipulation had been involved as well once Kakashi had said something about it.
But it wasn't, the ball just… naturally turned to flames. Like it was the most normal thing for his Aura to do.
Amber looked at the flames once more before swallowing. "Aren't you going to dispel it?" she asked.
Obito looked at her then back to the flames in his hand before sighing and doing as suggested.
Kakashi cupped his chin in thought. "Hm…" he raised his other hand and stared at it.
What was causing it? Kakashi couldn't say.
His blue eyes narrowed as a small arc of lightning rounded his hand. That arc turned from one into two and then three and so on.
The Raikiri was as natural to Kakashi as breathing, the technique a holdover from his former life. Making it, holding it, forming it. He was lucky to have landed with his specialty being elemental in his family. Summoning was nice and so were normal glyphs but he preferred his Semblance's personal focus being elemental.
At least he didn't need Dust, yeah?
"I wonder," Obito started, catching Kakashi and Amber's attention. "Is whatever this change is, is spiritual energy turning into fire just natural for it? Like a fish breathing in water?"
Amber's lungs ached at the silent gasp she'd sharply sucked in.
A memory passed her mind at Obito's words.
She frowned at the book in her hands. "What is all this? Carbuncles, Phoenixes, Salamanders?"
"Yes," Ozpin said as he stood in front of the blackboard in front of her sole desk.
They were in a back room, the old man teaching her the ways of magic.
Magic, she honestly thought maybe losing her memory was a good thing. She had a feeling whoever she was before, they were more likely to just call this old guy crazy and leave.
The her now? She was kind of loving it.
"Well, what do they do?"
"Besides the Carbuncle which come in many types so they're in many categories," he pointed to the title. "The Passionate Element is a book about creatures of fire-related myths."
"…" She just stared at the cover.
Ozpin chuckled as the girl tore open the book with fervor, eyes flipping up and down pages as she flipped past them.
"Why didn't you tell me?!" she yelled as she locked onto a picture of a red plant. "You said fire was my best element! Why didn't we do this first?!"
"Life is a little more complex than just doing what you're best at," Ozpin said with a slight chuckle.
The younger, teenaged, Amber hummed to herself as she turned back to the start of the book. "Mr. Ozpin?"
"Hm?"
"Are any of these creatures still around?" she asked hopefully, looking down the book's table of contents with a frown. "Hm?"
"The chances are… incredibly low," Ozpin said with a slight shrug. "Personally speaking… I don't wish to see many of those creatures again."
"Huh, why?"
"Amber, many of those creatures, while mystical, are rather aggressive. They control power beyond most human understanding nowadays."
"I guess…" the teen girl frowned further. "Hey, Professor Ozpin?"
"Yes?"
"These are all the old magical creatures?" she asked with a hand to her chin.
"Yes," Ozpin was confused. "Is something amiss?"
"Well… I mean, where are the dragons?"
Ozpin stilled for a bit, eyes widening for a moment before slowly nodding. "I see… I'm going to be honest with you, Amber, I can't say having such information would be to your benefit."
"Why?" Amber was incensed. "I mean, dragons are THE biggest fire-breathers! When you hear fire monster, you think DRAGON!"
"…" Ozpin let out a slight breath. "Dragons are creatures of old. Magnificent creatures, creatures that bring to mind might, strength, beauty, and power."
Ozpin hesitated for a bit before raising a finger to the air in front of him, a glow emanating from his fingertips.
Amber watched as the old wizard wrote out something in the air and watched in wonder as a head was drawn.
Large, angular, sharp, and reptilian, that was a dragon alright.
"You've got good hands, Mr. Ozpin," Amber complimented mindlessly.
"Ha, ha, ha," the old man laughed a bit. "I've had to dabble in all sorts of hobbies over the years, drawing just made the most sense in most of them," he sighed in melancholy, another life flashing before his eyes before he focused back on the present.
"Let me tell you, Amber," Ozpin began as he placed both hands on his cane, a strong pose that promoted an image of bravery and strength. "Dragons are beings that the world is, honestly, better without," Ozpin said with a slight huff.
"How come?"
"Amber, dragons are beings that are the peak of the Fire element. Big, strong, full of life-"
"Empowering spells, Power Enchantments, Specialized healing," Amber listed off before blinking. "Oh…"
Ozpin shot her a raised brow as she coughed into her fist.
"Continue, please."
"Hmph, you're not wrong," Ozpin smiled a bit. "Dragons embody a lot of the main Fire Spells that humans learned back in the day… But never forget that dragons are such terrifying beings. Their very existence changes the world as we know it, Amber, their presence affects the location where they stand just by being there."
"That sounds crazy… I totally believe you," she nodded.
"Indeed, dragons are beings that were also sought after, though," Ozpin frowned something fierce, eyes gaining a gleam in them. "I should know, I'd joined bands to do that very thing."
"For their gold, right?" Amber offered but blinked at Ozpin's shake of the head. "Wait but that's how it is in all the movies and stuff."
"Dragons having hordes isn't wrong so much as a sort of exaggeration," the headmaster shook his head. "Dragon's were sought after for more than just greed of monetary value but for their value as dragons."
"I mean, dragons would make a hell of a guard dog."
"Hm, hm, hm," Ozpin chuckled. "An imaginative use for sure but it was their bodies that were important. Dragons are full of life and that aspect isn't something to be taken lightly. Their bodies are the peak of physical ability, their scales harder than diamond and far tougher. But most importantly…" he reached behind his scarf but stopped, wincing slightly as he looked at Amber.
The girl frowned as she tilted her head in curiosity. "What's wrong?"
"… Amber, there's a long list of things that are precious in this world but none more so…" he pulled his hand out his scarf.
Amber's entire world seemed to go dark, eyes locking—No, her entire being, locking onto the item in Ozpin's hand.
It was a blood red sphere, a gem of some sort that seemed to make the room brighter and darker than ever before. At its top were a series of tiny, diamond-shaped, bits that were colored silver and only fell behind in luster to the object they were on top of.
She didn't think to breathe until she was abruptly brought back to the world of the present as Ozpin tapped her forehead, a frown on his face.
"W-What?" she stuttered as she tore her eyes away from that gem to look at Ozpin's face.
But the urge, the need, to look at that gem again… The want for it made her feel slightly empty, like it was calling to her.
"This… young Amber," Ozpin wore an expression of sorrow. "Is Dragon Amber, dragon blood that's been condensed and refined to such a state it's become an item that is far more valuable than any resource on this planet."
Amber felt her throat tighten as she listened.
"Dragons were mighty creatures known in legends for many things, their power, their destruction, but nothing was more important than one."
"Magic," Ozpin stated as he dangled the gem in front of her. "Dragons were magical beings that commanded the elements they were most attuned to like they were breathing. Mountains brought to the surface with a huff, flaming tornadoes pressed by their anger, glaciers appearing due to a press of the claw."
"…" Amber said nothing as she reached a hand out and made to touch the Dragon Amber only to come away with nothing as Ozpin held it at bay.
"We've stated how the principles of fire magic are something dragons embody, yes?" Ozpin held it in his hand. "This item… There are four of them in the entire world and each are to be given to a Maiden once she's become fully realized."
The young Maiden snapped her head in Ozpin's direction, hope, eagerness, happiness etched into her features.
Ozpin's sorrowful expression broke her reverie of positivity into confusion.
"This gem will press your powers beyond anything you could possibly imagine… Anyone in this era could become an almost magician-like being should they hold this," he looked at her. "The pull is strong, isn't it?"
Amber stilled.
"The want for it, the need for it to become a part of you," Ozpin echoed her emotions down to a 'T'. "You must have it, you're incomplete now, you're not full unless you have this."
Amber nodded rapidly, eyes never moving away from the Dragon Amber. "Yes…"
"Hahhh…." Ozpin sighed long and hard before his hand covered the gem in its entirety, a slowly glow emanating from his palm.
Amber's glazed over eyes shot open as clarity returned and shot back in her chair, knocking it over with her in it as she rolled to a kneel.
She didn't care though, nothing mattered at that moment other than getting away from that thing.
Ozpin slowly smiled. "That's why I chose you," he whispered and the girl looked up at him. "Your personality outweighs all your other attributes and makes you a perfect holder for this when the time comes."
Amber swallowed as she cringed upon seeing a flash of that thing as Ozpin put it back into his scarf.
"Ozpin, what just happened to me?" She shivered, arms holding one another. "I-I… I…"
"I told you before," Ozpin kneeled to her level. "Dragons are beings of magic and command their elements but not just that."
Amber knew what he meant. "It felt like it was calling me…"
"This blood may still have some of the owner's essence in it," Ozpin nodded, a hand coming to touch his scarf. "A dragon's entire being is to horde power among all else, so a person with magic being drawn to it makes sense."
The girl closed her eyes, mouth wrenching into a frown. "Why is that still around?" she opened her eyes as she asked the question. "What's the point of it? Professor Ozpin that thing seems like it could drive a person mad."
Ozpin's entire expression dropped at the mention but only for a second before his face shifted into an impassive demeanor.
Amber's entire being froze. "N-No…" she stared at him with shock as a cold pit formed in her stomach. "It's happened b-before, h-hasn't it?"
"… Never lose that strength of will, Amber," Ozpin got up and began to head to the door. "That power will keep you safe from a plethora of things and people."
Ozpin never saw her again for the rest of that day and she'd already made her decision.
She'd left by midnight, confused, alone, and worried for what her future held.
"Ms. Amber?" Obito's words snapped her out of it as she realized she'd been standing there, staring at him for however many seconds.
"Y-Yes?!" she shrieked slightly and winced at the confused looks on both the males face, Kakashi shooting her a concerned look.
"Perhaps the heat is getting to you," he said.
"M-Maybe," she said, biting her lip a bit. "I'm fine, just… continue with whatever we're doing."
"Everything alright down there?" came Olivia's voice over the speakers.
"Yes," Obito said. "What's next?" he asked but threw a curious eye Amber's way, the woman scratching her cheek as she looked away.
What was all that about? First that little moment he had earlier with her and now she was acting strange. Was she causing all this? He wasn't sure, all he did know was that she was involved in some way and he needed to get to the bottom of it eventually.
"Well, doing some standard breathing exercises will work," Olivia said. "Just practice a bit, tell us if you feel anything different about the flow or just your Aura in general."
Obito crossed his arms and nodded. "That's reasonable," he said before looking at the two older people with him. "I get the feeling this might cause some discomfort."
"I've had worse than a little heat," Kakashi said with a smile that Obito rolled his eyes at. "Though I'm unsure if Ms. White is going to be fine."
Amber flinched at the sight of both men's eyes turning on her and she chuckled nervously. "Y-You might be right but I'd like to stay a bit longer, if you don't mind," she said, looking at Obito.
He did but didn't say as much. "Very well, please stand back if you feel off."
Obito took a few steps away from them before nodding up to the observation deck. After which, he closed his eyes, arms at his sides, and focused on his breathing.
Amber saw Kakashi turn towards Obito, a hand cupping his chin as he watched.
She kept her eye on Kakashi but focused on Obito as she allowed a flow of magic to enter her eyes, a small curtain of flames sure to be surrounding them, signifying her magic use.
She looked Obito up and down before shutting it down, everything she needed to see already done.
His arms, mouth, head, and eyes all radiated magic. Magic that burned a bright blue and black, moving like fluid but looking like flames that engulfed those body parts she saw before it spread throughout his body every time he breathed.
The young man had magic, fire-related magic, he radiated heat just by having his Aura up and standing there.
The kid was turning into a godsdamned dragon and no one was the wiser. Sweet fuck…
Obito frowned as he continued his breathing exercises, mind noting that the 'heat' he'd noted days before had begun resting on the outside edge of his Aura. It was weird to think and feel and he grimaced.
His fingers curled slightly as he breathed in slowly, hissing slightly through his teeth, his Aura formed over his body tightly before it began to sink into his body. A sensation hit him as he did.
Right. That was the word that popped into his head. Having his Aura thrumming beneath his skin felt like the way it should have been.
"Obito?" Obito turned his head to see Kakashi's narrowed eyes. "Did you do something? It got warmer."
Obito frowned. "I honestly don't know," he frowned as he stared at his arms, those burning flames in between the patterns' lines a brighter blue. "Though I get the feeling I did something just now."
Olivia's eyes darted between all the screens around her and her attention paid more careful attention to the thermostat and the screen showing Obito's personal body temperature over his body.
"He raised it again," the Faunus muttered as the others looked on. "He doesn't seem to know why but if we look at his Aura readings," she pushed a screen to show towards the group.
His Aura was condensed inside the outline that showed Obito's body.
"He's compressing it?" Glynda frowned as she asked. "Why? What's the point of doing this?"
"Perhaps it's a personal exercise he came up with," Ozpin said calmly but his eyes betrayed his demeanor as they seemed to furiously look at every screen he could. "But we can assume that condensing seems to be causing his 'heat'."
Coco frowned as she looked at the screens, everything, and found herself getting frustrated.
Coco was more of a hands-on learner, she didn't fully grasp what was going on with Obito and felt like being down there, asking him questions, just being in there would give her a better idea than being up here.
Elena's eyes didn't leave Obito as Olivia gave her play-by-play of what was going on with all the gauges, charts, screens, and temperature.
This was caused by Dust? Preposterous. Elena didn't believe that but somehow that was the narrative.
Dust entering one's body shouldn't have this kind of effect, certainly not literally altering their soul and body like was happening with Obito.
Her fingers twitched as he kept his eyes closed and condensed his Aura.
Dust condensing, and refining, re-enforced the properties of the Dust in question, making it more potent and powerful. These methods allowed it to fit into different machinery, weapons, and household items. Not just that, either.
Fire Dust also emanated heat not unlike Obito was. Ice Dust did the same with chilliness, Lightning Dust with static electricity, so on and so forth.
Was that what was happening here? Had his very Aura adapted Dust mechanics? Was his Aura, no, was his very soul following different rules then most? Olivia had said he was being changed, if so, into what? A big piece of living Dust?
She was getting excited by the possibilities…
Elena moved up to the console next to her teammate and smiled at the Faunus who laughed nervously as she gave her friend the mic.
"Obito?" Obito looked up at them as she called him. "How about we test some Aura techniques?" Elena asked with a grin as she looked to Olivia.
"Do we have targets?"
Olivia nodded along, catching on, and began to mess with a series of buttons on the console.
Obito looked around as a part of the room formed several floating bulls-eyes, the objects simply floating frames of the objects they were supposed to be.
"Aura Shot is preferred here," Elena said. "We'll practice Tempering next and then Extension, okay?"
"Very well," Obito said, nodding to the teacher before turning to the pseudo-target range laid before him.
"Aura Shot?" Kakashi asked with interest as he cupped his chin. "So it's just a bullet of Aura?"
"Essentially," Obito said as Amber kept her distance from the two. "Maybe you should try it out yourself, that's gonna be something you'll get anyway."
"Hmm," Kakashi smiled as he thought it over. "Well, sure, give me a demonstration first."
Obito nodded as he raised a hand in front of him, aiming at a target and went through the process.
He breathed in before letting out a slow hiss of air, Aura spiraling into existence, in front of his hand, into a ball of black before it took on its flaming properties.
He nodded to Kakashi who nodded back slowly, watching the entire thing to the best of his ability, before focusing back on the target.
His flaming bullet shot off in half a second.
The distance between Obito and his target could be estimated at being about 20 meters and it took his attack two seconds to reach its destination.
The flames erupted around the bulls-eye, expanding on impact into a ball of swirling flames before dissipating, nothing left in its wake.
"That's about it," he said.
"Alright, let's see how my Semblance fairs," Kakashi said as his hand began to spark.
The two members of Team PECH stared at what happened.
"What?" Olivia blinked before pressing a series of keys on a keyboard, an image of the room forming in a screen above them with a series of meters around the edges. "What?"
"Something wrong?" Coco asked.
"Very," Elena said with a frown, a twitch in her fingers. "Those readings around the screen are Dust readings for each Dust being used in that room."
"Air, Gravity, Hard Light," Olivia listed off. "That's what's currently in use right now, you know why the last two are used but Air Dust is used to keep those targets stably in the air along with some Gravity to help them float."
"And?" Ochre frowned as she asked. "What was wrong?"
"Well," both team members looked at one another. "It's because of the readings we got when the target was destroyed."
"It was like the target was being burned to a crisp," Elena said, finger raised and one eye closed. "It's unnatural behavior for Dust. It acted like—"
"Like fire burning something normal," Glynda said as she adjusted her glasses. "That is rather strange. As far as I know, Dust doesn't burn like you say it is."
Ozpin remained quiet but this information only worried him further as to the happenings down below.
'Burning Dust?' A worrying idea popped into his head. 'Another way of looking at it would be burning magic, isn't it?'
He honestly hoped that he could control this situation should this reach a point where he had to step in.
"So, what?" Coco frowned as she looked around the room at the women. "What does that mean?"
"He interacts with Dust oddly," Elena explained. "He's becoming an unusual exception to the rules when it comes to a valuable resource, Coco."
"If we figured out what was happening between him and Dust…" Olivia muttered as she looked down at her notes in thought. "We might make a breakthrough in learning more about this unusual substance on Remnant."
The room was quiet, all eyes moving back to the floor below where Obito and Kakashi were standing by the target range.
Coco tightened her fist as Elena's fingers twitch once more.
"Olivia?/Doc?" Both teacher and student asked at once, turning to one another Coco waved her teacher on and Elena turned back to her bemused-looking friend. "I'd like to go down there myself."
"Me too!" Coco added, eyes narrowed. "If my Semblance can push this alon—"
"No, you will not," Ochre said with finality, getting a betrayed look from her little sister. "There's no reason for you to go down there."
"Obito's trying to figure something out down there, he's my friend, of course I have a reason for going down there," Coco shot back. "Besides, this whole thing is for me, too."
Ochre's eyes snapped to Olivia, the Faunus coughing in her fist as her tail fell flaccid.
"What is she talking about?" Ochre said but there was an undertone of worry that invaded her voice. "You originally said she was trying to learn more about her Semblance," Ochre's eyes seemed to darken, gaze chilling the Faunus doctor to her bones.
"W-Well," the fox Faunus rolled her hand as she swallowed. "Ms. Coco stated she found a new alteration to her arm."
Glynda, Elena, and Ozpin were intrigued while Ochre cringed at said attention.
"Yeah, it's this," she raised her hand and revealed the markings. "I found it yesterday and I'm kind of just tryin' to figure out what's up."
"I see," Elena observed the markings on the young girl's right hand. "I see, I see. With your Semblance, I can only imagine that this might be related in some way."
"Coco," Ochre said quietly, startling the younger Adel by its soft tone.
It's soft, worried tone that had a slight ache form in Coco's being. "Y-Yeah?"
"When did this happen?"
Coco opened her mouth to say that she knew when only to stop at the look Ochre had.
A worried look, a terrified look. Scared for her little sister that was bound to say something that was gonna put her in a situation Ochre didn't want to see.
Coco lied. "I don't know, it was forming a bit before this whole thing mission happened," she said, a slight twitch of the lip.
Ochre stared wide-eyed before covering her mouth, swallowing, and nodding with a slight shake. "Y-Yes, that is rather odd… Very well," she gave her permission but Coco made it a priority to talk it out with her the first chance she got.
Ochre was worried about this thing for some reason and Coco would be damned if she didn't find out what was eating her sister.
There was a dirty joke there but she'd save it for later!
"…" Glynda grit her teeth slightly before sighing, her shoulders falling. "I see."
Ozpin frowned at that, eyebrows furrowed slightly as he looked at his professor. "Ms. Goodwitch?"
"It's… nothing, Ozpin," Glynda shook her head. "It's honestly nothing."
Ozpin couldn't have been even more distrustful of that… He grumbled mentally a bit but let it go.
For now.
"I guess we're going down then, hm?" Elena said with a small smile at her student who nodded back with a determined expression. "Come along, then." Elena said as she moved to the staircase and opened it with little care.
"You're not going to put on the safety equipment?" Olivia asked but the lack of concerned showed how little she was worried. "Going all in, huh?"
"I get a better feel for Dust when I'm in there with full contact," Elena grinned ferociously. "I'm going to do my best to find out what this is."
Olivia chuckled before pressing a button on the bottom of her console and Elena blinked as a section of the wall by the door opened to reveal some glowing vials and a large, thick, white coat.
"Oh," Elena was all smiles as she removed the glowing vials and jacket. "You know me so well~"
"Yep," the Faunus turned to the confused Coco. "Well, ya see… Elena's more hands-on approach has gotten us out of many a situation, hehe," she nervously giggled.
"Right… So I'm gonna do the same," she saw Ochre's unimpressed look. "B-But I'll take the goggles and vest!" she announced loudly before snatching the safety equipment before following Elena out the deck.
Amber had seen enough and, as she saw both Elena and Coco coming down the staircase, she took her out.
"I'm going to go back up," she said, the lines well-rehearsed from repeating them in her head. "It's kind of too warm for me, anyway."
"I understand," Elena nodded as she and Coco reached the bottom floor, the latter looking at Obito and Kakashi as they messed around the shooting range. "Be well!"
Amber nodded as she went up the stairs.
The two newcomers to the bottom floor walked over towards Obito and Kakashi. The former having his arms crossed as he advised the latter's technique.
"I guess learning these so called breathing techniques will be interesting," Kakashi said as he held both his hands outs, lightning shooting between them.
Obito caught that half-a-second glimpse of a disc-like object in front of Kakashi's lighting before a familiar pair of lightning dogs surged out towards the targets before sending an explosion of lightning and thunder down.
Obito covered his face with an arm as he saw the three targets break on contact with Kakashi's lightning. "That's certainly more convenient than Aura Shot."
Kakashi nodded before sighing as he dropped his arms to his side before bringing one up to scratch his cheek. "Well, Aura Shot seems like a quicker, easier, and over all simpler technique with little cooldown. The Raiken requires me to stay stationary like this."
"Does your Semblance limit you like that or is it just experience?"
"Experience," Kakashi said as he clenched his hand into a fist before both the males turned their attention to the approaching females. "Sup Coco, Ms. Hawks."
"Hello, both of you," Elena greeted with a smile even as Obito caught sight of her familiar coat and lifted a brow.
So that was where this was going, huh?
"Hey Obi," Coco greeted with a raised hand that Obito nodded to. "How's it going down here?" she asked as she looked down at his arms. "So there's fire in them?"
Elena peeked at what Coco was looking at and blinked as she saw what the girl was talking about. "That's interesting," she said as she kneeled down to get a closer look.
Her eyes narrowed at the motes of blue floating away from the flames before shrugging and getting back up to her full height.
Kakashi looked up at her and breathed in before whistling. "You are quite tall."
"I get that a lot," Elena grinned before focusing on the task at hand. "So with the readings we've got and the observations we can make, I've come to the conclusion that your current state is not unlike Dust."
Obito nodded. "I figured as much," the cop said. "I get the feeling you figured out something else."
"I did," Elena said as she closed her eyes for a moment. "Your heat is indeed quite warm, there's already condensation on the wall."
Obito looked and blinked as he saw that she was right, there were water droplets falling down the smooth walls of the bottom floor.
"I didn't notice, is it that bad?"
"Huh?" Coco blinked at Elena. "Can someone explain, I don't feel any different at all."
Kakashi and Elena blinked at her in confusion. "How aren't you?"
"I don't, I think I might now," Coco began to say something only to change her sentence as she looked at her hand. "This might be a part of it," she showed the trio around her.
The red markings on her right hand were glowing softly, a sight that caused the others to look on confused.
"Was this always here, Coco?" Obito frowned. "I never noticed it before."
"Well, I wasn't really showing it when we hung out yesterday," Coco admitted. "Kind of wanted to wait to show this and didn't want to do this in front of Qrow and the others since you guys were having a moment."
"Coco this could be important."
"So is hanging with people, Obi," she tutted her finger at him like a concerned mother. "You seriously need to chill some more."
Kakashi and Elena giggled at the flat expression Obito shot the girl before the teacher threw in some advice.
"Life's a bit of a balance, she is right in that part," Elena stated with a smile. "I'm not sure why you received Aura but from the little passages I've gotten from the others about your actions, and your body, you should take the time to relax. Life's not some eternal battle, despite the Grimm being an ever present threat."
Obito made to comment, mouth open and finger raised but was stumped once Kakashi spoke up as well.
"She's right," he shrugged with a smile that reached his eyes. "Life's meant to be enjoyed, Obito, can't just fight every second of it."
Obito felt a slight nervousness fill his feet when Kakashi said that, confused and worried about what that meant. "Right…"
"Great!" Coco clapped her hands with a grin. "So let's work on some stuff together, my guy!"
"With that lesson squared away," Elena clapped her hands and around the group a series of cylinders appeared. "I want to try something. Mr. Uchiha."
"What would that be, Ms. Hawks?"
"I want to see how your change works up close," she rolled her shoulders and the eight vials hanging in her coat's tails flashed from beneath her clothes.
Obito's eyes widened at the sight of yellow and white refined Dust vials.
"Lightning and Wind Dust are her specialties," Coco said.
Oh balls. He had a feeling she was just waiting to spring her intent on him.
"Well, I'd like to see Coco show us if she can do anything with her little development first before we do anything," Elena said with a raised finger before all eyes turned on the girl in question.
"Okay, so first off, I kind of did it when I remembered the way Obito did it," Coco admitted before raising her hand ahead of her. "I don't know how to breathe well but I got it to show it! So maybe I've got an idea?" she asked more than said with a nervous smile.
Obito frowned at that. "Well, might as well do what you can remember. Learning breathing technique is simply another matter we'll deal with once we get your training started."
"Oh yeah," Kakashi dropped his fist into his palm. "I'd forgotten about that, I guess we'll be seeing more of each other, Coco, Obito," the albino said with a smile that held a mischievous air about him.
"Nice!" Coco grinned before looking at her hand. "So first I activated my Aura."
Her body began to light up with a brown glow, the Aura reaching her right arm before those red marks surged and crackled with electricity.
"I see," Elena cupped her chin, eyes dancing with confusion as she saw what was happening. "This never happened before."
"Right? So then I was like, it's not doing nothin' and I tried to make the shape in my head but nothing-heyo!" Coco said, performing the step they couldn't really see until she blinked at the circuit-like lines running down from the large hexagon. "Okay… It didn't do that the first time when I did this."
Obito frowned alongside Kakashi, the sight of the lines familiar to them. "It's just like…" he whispered to his friend.
"Danzo's, yeah…" Kakashi's eyes moved up and down the patterns. "Why though? What does this mean?"
Obito frowned as he replayed everything that happened during the battle in downtown before he zeroed in on a few bits.
Coco was, apparently, related to that boy. Him being the Adel's younger brother.
The Dust grown in that basement… If Obito turned his thinking around…
He'd originally thought that Danzo had had them created somehow but maybe that was wrong. That boy had enormous pieces of Dust in his arms and Obito remembered that the boy said he was offering Danzo assistance. So the chances were high it was the boy who created the Dust, right?
So that meant that there was a connection between Coco's Semblance and that Dust, MOD he corrected. Was this that child's Semblance? If so…
Was Coco's Semblance hereditary? His eyes snapped to the girl's reactions to her Semblance. Was this a part of it? Was she too also going to grow Dust in her arms?
… No, he knew what Coco's Semblance was. She said it enhanced Dust which, besides the rather terrifying implications of such a thing, meant that was all she knew it did but it came with a caveat.
Semblances were interesting things. Being like Kekkei Genkai, they were unique attributes attributed to the person's soul instead of their body system. The chances for Semblances to be hereditary were rare though. The Schnee Semblance for example were one such thing, the Hyuugas, apparently since they were here in Remnant, were another.
His Sharingan… If it matched up then his Semblance was hereditary, which was worrying in of itself but he'd worry about that… whenever it mattered, if at all.
Back to the topic at hand, Semblances also came with a sort of in-built mental explanation for one's powers, at least, the pure basis of it.
Raven had told him when she'd gotten her Semblance, back in Beacon, when she'd become attracted to one Tai Xiao Long. She'd told him that she'd been startled by the information and had only the jest of it.
She could teleport… But she only found out later it was only to people she had a connection to, hilariously enough. Apparently she'd tried to get out of class one day and just teleported next to Tai who was in another class.
Comedy gold. The laughing of Vernal back then had even gotten a few chuckles out of him as Raven looked embarrassed by her own actions.
So Semblances gave you the basic idea of your ability but any limits typically were figured out by the person.
What did this mean, then? Was it a part of her Semblance? Or was it something that happened rec…
His eyes widened as he fought to stop his mouth from dropping.
No… It had affected her as well?!
"Well, I guess we should continue the steps, yes?" Elena asked.
"Alright, let's see… I was trying to remember how Obi did his fireball thing," Coco explained as she breathed in a shuddering breath. "Performance anxiety sucks, godsdammit," Coco groaned, flustered by her inability to breath like she could before.
Obito, ignoring his current astonishment, brought her attention to him. "Don't think too much about it, just follow what I do."
Obito demonstrated his breathing, holding a hand in front of him as an orb of Aura began to form.
Coco's eyes watched him all the way and aimed her own hand at his and tried to follow.
The red diamonds on the back of her hand glowed bright and Coco felt a smile reach her face as she saw the arcing red electricity begin to form out of her palm.
So you could imagine her surprise when she blinked and the world went black.
She blinked once and then twice before looking around the black void she found herself in.
Coco Adel frowned nervously as she looked around in front of her before shivering at the feel of a presence at her back.
"I didn't think I'd ever get this chance…" a suspiciously familiar voice said from her back and Coco's eyes widened as she realized what who's it was.
She turned on a dime, eyes trailing up from the other person's white dress and fair-skinned legs to their familiar face, medium-length brown hair with a long blonde bang and their…
Silver eyes.
Her eyes trembled at the other version of hers smile.
"Yes, life does have a way of working out for those destined to change the world," the silver-eyed Coco's mouth formed into a grin as she reached out a hand towards Coco.
Coco felt like she couldn't move, her entire being froze as a 'pull' formed from this copy's hand that came closer and closer.
The copy's eyes widened and Coco blinked as she was pulled back, a pale hand entering her peripheral.
"She's her own person," a voice said. "And you won't destroy her."
~NRK~
That's a wrap and we got a re-envisioning of the duality of Coco Adel from Dark Silver.
Yeah, once again, near the ending of this chapter I had another discovery writing epiphany! This event with Coco has a good reason and it's not especially obvious yet but we'll get to it.
Entirety of this chapter was just a lot of fun. We get to see Amber! Hooray! I don't have a real grasp for the persona I want to give her yet, though. Still working on that.
Ozpin is actually a grey-morality character in this, all it took was literally a few words. Of course RT couldn't do something like this if their lives depended on it for how much they WANT it to be true but whatever.
Semblances! Yes, I've added this little bit to Semblances because I'm pretty sure they work like the Mangekyo Sharingan does. Like when Sasuke and Taka were fighting Killer Bee and he used Amaterasu.
It's like he just got information from it on its new abilities and used it to save Karin. That's sort of how I got it but I could be wrong. That said, it works for me in this case as it helps establish and set a thorough line for Semblances as a whole.
They can find their limits and become more creative by learning and using it. This doesn't mean they don't have room for growth though! It means we can have characters who might need to recontextualize their abilities, kind of like how in My Hero Academia, some quirks aren't fully understood until later on in life and they change it on their record.
Words: 11k+
~NRK Out~